Police appeal over savage attack on guide dog

This shocking video shows a blind woman's guide dog being savaged by a terrier-type dog at a railway station.

The attack took place as the 57-year-old woman walked through Cricklewood station, in north-west London.

She passed close to a man standing in an underpass who was drinking a can of beer with the dangerous dog at his feet.

The unleashed animal ran towards her and attacked her brown labrador, leaving it needing emergency veterinary care for deep puncture wounds to its neck.

At one point the owner kicked and punched his dog in a bid to make it let go, but quickly gave up and ran off.

Pc Gerry Griffin said the ordeal, which left the owner deeply upset, lasted three minutes.

He said: "This dog was not muzzled and was dangerously out of control. The woman was extremely distressed and feared for her own safety.

"What made this awful incident even more harrowing was the fact that the man made no effort to assist her or to check that she was all right once the attack was over.

"We have carried out a number of local inquiries and ask that anyone who recognises the man gets in contact with us."

"The owner would do well to hand himself in as his animal poses a clear danger to other dogs and to the public."

The man was described as white, aged in his mid to late 20s, around 5ft 11ins and of slim build.

He had a cropped beard and brownish to red hair which was cut short. He was wearing a grey-coloured top and black tracksuit bottoms.

The dog was described by police as a muscular terrier, possibly a cross-breed, brown with white paws, with white around its nose and at the tip of its tail.

* Anyone with information about the attack, which took place on Sunday, October 4, at about 1.30pm, should call British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40.